1. Technical Field
This invention relates to object locating systems and, more particularly, to a system for locating a plurality of objects within a target zone.
2. Prior Art
It can be bothersome and time consuming when at home to search for items such as keys, wallets, remote controls etc. that have been mislaid. In addition, at business locations such as offices, warehouses and the like, many valuable employee hours are lost each year searching for mislaid files, equipment, merchandise and the like. As such, a variety of object locating systems have been developed in the prior art.
Unfortunately, with one recent exception, these previous systems are single-use devices where only one object can be located with the system. The one recent exception does allow users to locate up to two objects. Such a system, however, will not allow the user to keep track of more than two items. Also, the system only provides for key chain attachment, and does not allow for a more permanent and secure attachment to a variety of other commonly misplaced items, such as remote-control devices, cell phones, PDA's, pagers, electronic devices, etc. The system also suffers from a multiple system interference problem, described herein below, and does not provide any means to prevent the misplacement of the transmitter itself.
For systems with more than one receiver, no provision is made to easily and conveniently identify which button on the transmitter corresponds to which lost object. This results in the user occasionally pressing the wrong button and locating the wrong object. This is a nuisance and results in lost time and effort in retrieving an object. Furthermore, each receiver requires different circuitry to specifically respond to a selected transmitter signal.
Accordingly, a need remains for a system for locating a plurality of objects in order to overcome the above-noted shortcomings. The present invention satisfies such a need by providing a system that is convenient and easy to use, is versatile in its application, is durable in design, and allows a user to quickly and easily locate a variety of misplaced objects. Such a system allows a person to clearly distinguish between various objects, thus eliminating the chance of inadvertently attempting to locate an object that was not misplaced. The object locating system is also easy to use, thus allowing persons of all ages to effectively locate misplaced items.